Letters: Judge's Strom sentencing was a major disappointment

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Published Oct 30, 2007 at 12:00AM / Updated Feb 13, 2016 at 06:24PM

As the wife of a local law enforcement officer, I am very disappointed in the message that Judge Wier is sending out to the public by means of his very lenient sentencing of Strom (andquot;Strom receives jail sentence,andquot; Oct. 26).

Judge Wier's message is that it isn'tthat serious of anoffense to flee from officers by car, thenon foot and then toassault officers oncecaught.Mr. Strom, despitehis criminal history, willprobably only serve six of the 12 months, be released back onto our streets, and then who knowswhat he will do the next time an officer attempts to pull him over.

Unlike spouses and loved ones like myself, I doubt Judge Wier loses any sleep at night out of concern for our local law enforcement who put their lives on the line every time they put their uniforms on and go on duty. How else can he give such a weak sentence to sucha serious crime? Judge Wierhas let the law enforcement officers and their loved ones down as well as this community.

I have read too many stories like this in the nine months I have lived here in Crescent City, as well asother areas I have lived.Yet, too many judges don't want to support our officers by sending out a strong message that this is unacceptable behavior. Until then, we will continue seeing these kinds of cases and there will eventually be a tragic ending where someone will lose their life. Keep in mind that the behavior of people like Mr. Strom puts us all in danger when we might suddenly find ourselves caught in the middle of a dangerous situation like this was.

As for the Del Norte Community Watchdogs, please use your time more wisely. I do not doubt there are a fewbad apples in law enforcement, just as there are in any vocation. The biggest majority of law enforcement officers don't go to work hoping toget into a pursuit or in a scuffle with someone. They just want to do their job and then they want to go home to their families, just like everyone else. Groups like yours should spend their time trying to improve the relationshipbetween the community and local law enforcement, not tearing it down. As for the few bad apples, the agencies have people in place to handle them. Let them do their jobs.

Finally, thank you to those who do their best in trying to get people like Mr. Strom off our streets and out of our communities.